Israel Praised for Aid in Lebanon

October 30, 1978

SANTIAGO, Chile (Oct. 29)

Charles Malik, the Lebanese diplomat who had served a term as president of the United Nations General Assembly, said that Israel was helping the Lebanese Christians for both moral and political reasons.

He spoke at a press conference here during the World Congress of Lebanese Communities, which was attended by some 500 persons earlier this month. The congress demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Syrian army from Lebanon.

Malik said Israel was helping the Christians because it wanted the protect its boundaries from Syria and because the Jews had experience with suffering for centuries and identified with a minority that was facing extinction.